The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-03-13
UNION LABOR PARTY.
A Moderate-Sized Meeting Addressed by Lead.
ers of the Organization.

Tn people here in sympathy with the Union
Laboa. party, which was organized and issued il,
first declaration Of principles in platform q,
the recent Cincinnati convention had demon
stration at Tomlinson Hall last night, Thar.
were about 800 persons, men, women and child.
rem, present Thomas Graelle was called Ia
preside Looking over the audience, he said Ia
felt considerably disappointed at the attend.
ance, and CHARGED the small namber present "a
. statement made ia the Indianapolis journal
that An order had been issued by the Knights
of Labor organization forbiddiug its members
to be present Mr.. Gruelle denounced the
statement as false, and predicted thas the next
meeting held in Indianapolis would be large
one, no matter what the papers might say. He
then introduced the first speaker of the even.
ing, Col S. F. Norton. of Chicago, who pub.
fishes paper there, the Sentinel, that advo.
Gates the new party.
Mr.. Norton's theme was Homes for the
Homeless" He believed that to be the key
of the situation. and spoke of the 200, 000,.
900 acres of lands that had been given to rail-
roads, which, he said, should be taken away
from them and given to actual settlers the gov
eminent furnishing transportation to take them
to these lands, where houses ready made in
Chicago. could be sent them to live in. The gov.
ernment ought to give them this assistance as
ten years loan at ) per cent. per anuum He
said that every man in indianapolis and every
man in the Nation shonld have his own home
Then we will have peace and harmony, pros.
peritv and happiness" he continued. 1T is a
fact that 80 per cent. of the people of the
United States are to day practically homeless
they are renters or their homes are mortgaged
to money lenders Every man. woman and
child in the United States should have home
of his or her own across the threshold Of which
no landlord no tax-gatherer, work master
creditor can or dare step his foot l would
have that homo free from taxation and exempt
from execution, SO that no creditor or mort.
gageor could get hold upon it." Mr.. Norton
devoted considerable time to railroad monopoly
and national banks. He believed it to be time
for the people, the great wealth producers of the
country. the workingmen, the manufactures
and the merchants to rise and take this govern.
ment into their own hands, that it was
time to wrest the country from the hands
of hucksterlng politicians who have managed
to keep the people arrayed in two parties against
themselves-two long rows of jackasses kicking
the stufing out Of each other" as he e,oquently
expressed il.
Mrs. Mary e. Haggart, OF this city, spoke
next her speech being followed by one by the
Hon. Jesse Harper, of Illinois Mrs. Haggarts
theme was woman suffrage. 1t was 9 beautiful
piece OF rhetoric Her only allusion TO the labor
convention was as to the tenth resolution of the
platform. the one declaring for female suffrage
which was just sufficient to hang her speech
upon.
Mr.. Harper expressed great disgust with tho
newspapers, which be held to be the friends and
upholders of monopolists and the enemies of the
down-trodden and oppressed: he said, "a
danger to civilization and to the church of the
| living God" The meeting adjourned without
| reference in suggestion or formal action az to
! what is to DO done in the future.